The band members have nicknames like Bloodfire, Bloodsea and Deadsphere on drums.
Zuriaake released a remarkable album Afterimage of autumn in 2007, while Liu was a master’s student.
The album, which combines black metal with original poetry, quickly became a fan favorite and is considered a milestone in Chinese heavy metal music history.
The band is known for its unique and mysterious performance style, as all members wear straw rain capes, bamboo hats and veils on stage and never show their faces during performances.
The music is a fusion of traditional black metal with Chinese influences and contains samples of traditional Chinese instruments such as temple blocks, handbells and xuna spherical, vessel-shaped flute
Her lyrics are also inspired by traditional Chinese poems and incorporate elements of Chinese legends and mythology. Some of her songs are over 20 minutes long.
Between 2008 and 2012, the band was largely inactive because Liu was pursuing his doctorate in Germany at the Technical University of Berlin.
In 2012, after completing his postdoctoral studies, Liu joined Shandong University – which ranks 316th in the QS World University Rankings 2025 – as a faculty member.
During his tenure, Liu rose from lecturer to associate professor and was awarded a tenured professorship and the role of doctoral supervisor in 2020.
In addition, he has published over 80 scientific papers, 14 of which have appeared on the covers of scientific journals – a source of pride for many researchers – and he has been granted several invention patents.
Parallel to his academic achievements, Liu’s musical career also flourished.
In 2015 the song Gu Yanwhich translates to “Lonely Wild Goose”, was released by Zuriaake and was well received in the heavy metal community.
A particularly poetic line in the song, “Chasing the moon across the horizon, dancing in the lonely night sky,” evoked emotions among fans.
“I think researchers are like lonely wild geese. The deeper they delve into their research, the more isolated they become. They struggle in loneliness, close to despair, but their persistence allows them to catch a faint glimpse of the dawn,” said one supporter.
Liu’s story has sparked a lively debate on the Internet.
“The balance between research and rock music – this professor is really remarkable,” said one person.
“He plays heavy metal in the evenings and researches metals during the day. He really is China’s first metal doctor,” wrote another.
His students are also impressed by his skills as a rocker.
“My boss is this lead singer and I’m a drummer. When I applied for a job with him, I attached some photos of my band rehearsals and performances to my email and that made him choose me,” said one of them.